French envoy rejects reports of Pak pilots training on Rafale in France

New Delhi: French Ambassador Alexandre Ziegler on Thursday dismissed as “fake news” reports that a batch of Pakistani pilots was trained on Rafale fighter jets being procured by Qatari Air Force.
American aviation industry website ainonline.com reported that the first batch of pilots trained on the Rafale fighter jet for Qatar in November 2017 were “Pakistani exchange officers”.
“I can confirm that it is fake news,” Ziegler tweeted.
French diplomatic sources said no Pakistani pilots ever trained on Rafale jets in France.
There were concerns in the Indian military establishment over the report by the US-based website as India was also procuring 36 Rafale jets from France at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore.
It is learnt that the Government got in touch with the French Government after the report and Paris conveyed to New Delhi that no Pakistani pilots were trained on Rafale jets in France.